“One day you are born you die the next - today, at twilight, autumn breezes blow.” - Chikamasa. During the late 1100s in Japan, there were two large groups called the Taira and the Minamoto who battled to control the country. The Minamoto won the civil war and made a new government controlled by a powerful general called the shogun. Warriors in Japan were called Samurai. In Europe the warriors were called knights. Knights trained in exchange for farmland or food and they swore to be loyal to the nobles. There were more differences than similarities Samurai and Knights like there feudal class systems, loyalty to the feudal lord in their country, the type of armor they wear, codes of honor, and feelings about death. To begin with, Samurai and knights had many differences because of the feudal class systems. The feudal system in Japan ran from Emperor, Shogun, Daimyo, Samurai, Peasant farmers, artisans and trades people, and merchants. As well …show more content…
A Samurai’s armor were made of small armor iron scales that were tied together, lacquered, and then made into armor plates with silk or leather cords. Samurai did not wear armor on their right arm so they can draw their bow faster. The knight’s armor was made of chain mail then changed to metal compared to a Samurai’s armor but, since the knight’s armor was made of metal it was able to protect the knight from cannons and crossbows. But a disadvantage of the knight’s is that is was too heavy and if knocked down it was hard to get back up as opposed to the Samurai’s armor only got heavy when wet. “One disadvantage of samurai armor is that when it became wet, the silk cords absorbed water and became heavy.” and, “As more powerful weapons such as crossbows and longbows became common, chain mail was no longer sufficient protection. In response, knights began to wear complete suits of armor, constructed from metal.”(Document
Samurai and Knights are warriors fighting and serving for their lord. Samurai and knights are both trained, physically and mentally to fight for their lords, however while in a battle, strategies of both make it hard to distinguish who would win. While both warriors are very similar in many ways, Samurais differences such as their, training, weapons, and armor give them big advantages.
Roughly in the years 1000 to 1600 CE there were Samurai and knights. They were two very different but very similar warriors. Samurai were the knights of japan and knights were the samurai of europe. Both made from a lack of army and government, both needing land or payment, and both giving their lives to their master. They look very different, but are they more similar than they seem? Keep reading to find out.
Both protective coverings were specifically designed to counter past-day weapons. Document D explains how samurai had armor that was divided into plates, which helped deflect projectiles like arrows. Document D also elaborates on how the whole body of a knight would be covered, protecting him from fatal blows dealt by a sword. Speaking of swords, both vassals had to be educated to use one. According
Document D states, “As more powerful weapons such as crossbows and longbows became common, chain mail was no longer sufficient protection. In response, knights began to wear complete suits of plate armor, constructed from metal.” Finally, in Documents E and F it states the similarities between the samurai and knights
These pieces of iron metal plates were their to help protect them from extremely dangerous weapons like swords and crossbows. In Document D, it stated that knights wore armour made out of tiny metal rings linked together. While the samurai had their armour filled all around with tiny iron scales that were tied together. This meant that both knights and samurai used metals in their armour to keep them protected during a battle. In Document C, it talks about how the knights and samurai trained at a young age to prepare for a battle when they get older. For example, a samurai started to train at about the age of 14, while a knight started as early as the age of four or five. These warriors were trained at a young age, so they would be able to improve on their skills
There are many similarities between the samurai of medieval Japan and the knights of medieval Europe, especially considering their training, armor, and the code that they live by. For example, Documents A and B discuss that both the samurai and knight, begins training in childhood, at about fourteen years of age, progress to the next level, and trained with sticks rather than real weapons. However Documents A and B also state that samurais practice the religion of Zen Buddhism, while knights were given very little religious instructions. According to Document A,¨Squires continued with weapons training, but were already considered to be fighting men. They would accompany their master knight into battle, dress him, feed him, care for his horses
Likewise, knights wore “complete suits of plate armor, constructed from metal...wore helmets, gloves, and shoes of steel...a knight’s armor could weigh 40 to 60 pounds.” (Document D) Both samurais and European knights were protected by a heavy armor out of metal in battle; it can be inferred that both Japan and Europe found importance in protecting their warriors looking from the stringency of armor and protection. The reason for protecting their warriors would be due to the myriad of battles feudal Japan and Europe would have had to carry out. To ensure success in battle, they would’ve made further technological advances such as protective armor, ensuring better performance when battling. By protecting the warriors using this effective armor, both Japan and Europe would’ve been able to attain more as a whole and advance as a civilization - a common achievement carried out as well. Despite the many differences between Japanese samurais and European knights, the similarities outweighed these differences due to the homologous elements in their position in hierarchy and the use of protective armor in battle, leading to the success in both Japan and
How were knights and samurai similar? In Europe and Japan, there were issues that lead to a samurai and knights. The countries' government was not stable and quickly falling apart and so was the military. There were people invading their land and with an unstable government, they needed help before the invaders took over their way of life. Historians believe knights and samurai were different in their feelings about death, but they are more similar. They were both a warrior class and both showed loyalty to their master.
Europe and Japan were in pieces after their central government’s power was challenged. Because of this situation, a feudal system was developed. Nobles pledge loyalty to their Lord. To protect their Lords, Nobles trained warriors. In Europe, these warriors were called knights.
The first reason why the knights and the samurai are more different than alike is because of their code of honor. Document E states that there are two different codes of honor. The code of honor of the samurai was called Bushido. In Bushido, samurai are loyal to their family and to friends. They devote themselves to helping others. In chivalry, knights were to be helpful to ladies. They always had to be loyal to the king. People may think that just because they both have codes of honor and they are loyal to others means they are the
For Japan and Europe, it was a time of trouble…Document “In the late 400’s both Europe and Japan created a feudal system in order to keep peace in the land. Lords acquired large estates of land. They granted some of their lands to lesser nobles, whom promised to fight when conflicts arose.” Background Essay DBQ. So where the similarities greater, or were the differences greater? The samurai and knights were more similar than different in three broad areas, social position, training and armor and the code of honor.
My second reason is that the knights had very strong and effective armour, whereas the samurai’s armour was always changing and was never as good as the knight’s armour, as samurai depended more on their fighting skills instead of the armour. The samurai armour was made up of several sections. The main body is called a do or cuirass, and is made from plates or lamellae (small oblong-shaped pieces of steel linked by strips of leather and covered with layers of lacquer). The helmet has a crest and a hair pommel. There is also a face mask, which would have been decorated with ugly features intended to scare the enemy. Extra protection is provided by a coverage of the neck (made of jointed metal) and shoulder guards (made from small plates laced together, with silk allowing movement). Thigh and calf guards are made from a combination of chain mail and plates. Underneath the samurai’s armour, the samurai would wear a one-piece baggy garment with a special kimono (the kimono looks a bit like a dressing gown). This did mean that the samurai would be more likely to get injured, as the armour would only offer very little protection. Samurai armour was designed to help the Samurai move comfortably and efficiently when fighting, so if a knight stabbed the samurai then the samurai would get injured and this would affect the samurai while he is fighting (the samurai would be fighting worse), and possible depending on how bad the wound is, it could kill the
Lastly, by looking at these soldiers armors, the differences are noticable. Samurai wore small iron scales woven together with silk or leather, while knights completely covered themselves in metal armor. However, it is evident that despite the differences, both of these armors would cover most of their bodies, and offered great protection (Document “D”). All in all, training and armor made warriors who they are, and it wasn’t quite different for samurai and
Samurai and knights are not identical, they do have a good amount of differences. For instance, after going through training, samurai were awarded their title and responsibilities at the age of fourteen while knights took on their full responsibilities at twenty-one. Document B points out that although loyalty was important to both Japanese and European warriors, “loyalty towards the feudal lord in Japan was hereditary” but it was not in Europe. This means that in Japan “service of a feudal lord went from father to son” so the relationship between the lord and his warrior lasted for generations. Along with that, although both groups wore full body armor, Document D states that “a knight’s armor could weigh forty
The Knights of Europe and the Samurai of Japan shared quite a few similarities; however, they do also share many differences. One such similarity would be that both the Knights and the Samurais were brave, strong, and loyal to their cause, especially due to both of their trainings starting at a very young age. An example of a difference would be the samurais having a much lighter armor than knights. This allowed for a more agile army. They also ascended to their titles at separate ages, with samurais being at a mere 14 years of age, and knights being 21.